Enterprise Reporters Must Double-check Facts Before Publishing – Dadson

By Josephine Adusei Gyamfi

Adabraka, ACCRA – October 24, 2022: Journalists today need to place special emphasis on differentiating between fact and fiction before they go to print. They must stop thinking like ordinary citizens and double-check stories before publishing.

Nanabanyin Dadson, veteran journalist and Head of Journalism Department at African University College of Communications made these statements during a lecture of Level 300 Journalism Students on the subject “Between facts and fiction in this era of fake news”.

Mr. Dadson said, now, more than ever, journalists need to look out for the five Ws and H (Who, What, Where, Why, When, and How), check the credibility of the source websites and the authors, and do due diligence before proceeding to submit their stories for publication.

“In the first place, as journalists we are expected to report the truth. Now, fake news – the word ‘fake’ makes it inappropriate to call it news. Hence there is the need to be very careful about what we read and what we write. What we write must be facts, not fake information, because news must always be true,” he said.

Mr. Dadson said traditional media comprising radio, television, and newspapers carry information that is normally checked through a system of rigorous editing.

“So called ‘fake’ news on the other hand – which tends to be on new media – do not go through this process. People just think about something and post it straight away, so it does not go through this rigid system,” he lamented.

“As enterprise journalists, we should be able to differentiate between fact and fiction before submitting stories. We must stop thinking like ordinary citizens and double-check stories before sending them to the editor,” he advised.